This thread should be in the film critiques section… 
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You said it much more eloquently and precisely than me.
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Oh sure, you have to go and critique our critiquing. LOL
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You wrote like three paragraphs on how people online are too critical of media these days.
Only if he actually did those things. It is possible to be a straight white male filmmaker and make films that are interesting without being superficial and tactless.
This short failed at that IMO. Sure, the repair dude is sexist, but that could have been saved by a little self awareness or doing something more interesting with the plot, or giving the other protagonist literally anything else to do apart from shrug and bat her eyelashes. As it is it’s simply boring.
I feel the opposite, seems like we’re headed towards a time when films are more diverse and true and accurate and varied than ever, where female characters are three-dimensional and minority characters aren’t just shoehorned in to meet some PC quota but are actually well-written and realistic.
I’ve seen this change happening slowly but steadily in TV and film over the past 5 or 10 years and I think it’s largely due to people speaking out when they see content that isn’t up to scratch. Yes, anything you put out there is held to a high standard these days, and it’s making everything better, not worse.
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Sure, I wrote a bit about people expecting things to be almost commissioned works made specially for them. How is that me being afraid the filmmakers feelings are hurt? I think your wording is simply meant to provoke, no? Which, if that’s how you want to do things, is your style, etc. then go for it. But it doesn’t exactly make me want to converse with you or learn, exchange ideas, etc.
Again, I think the best solution will always be an artist’s version of that Ghandi quote - Be the change you wish to see in the world. Go write, film, record, whatever you wish to see more of. Put your viewpoint out there and don’t expect other people - who clearly are not you and don’t have your lived experiences and insight - to do it for you. They won’t be able to do it as well as you, even if they tried.
I agree. It’s pretty dull and sappy (edit - but it’s also not trying to be something it’s not. it’s sweet and fluffy not some gritty character study). I just don’t think it should be rewritten or try to cater to viewpoints and perspectives that would not be from the maker’s own honest perspective - whether that perspective is good, bad, popular, unpopular is another matter. I think if people want something different they should go make a better film.
I actually think we agree here, somewhat. And I’m all for it, like I tried to say earlier. I perhaps should have said something like “I feel like we are in danger of heading towards a time when the only thing “safe” to release will be watered down, artificially inclusive, politically correct content.”
I’m all for different voices making their own art and sharing it with the world. Thanks to modern production tools, and even iPhones, it’s certainly possible, and being done. Best just to keep it individual, honest, and start getting as many voices heard as possible, not making politically-correct pandering content that tries to please everyone and ends up pleasing no one.
I also think women and minorities are better represented these days. But not because nerdy white dudes all of a sudden became woke writers or their scripts are run through a diversity committee. I think films are becoming more diverse because filmmakers themselves are more diverse and telling their own stories.
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Could your wife calm down some of the more anxious spirits on this forum?
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honestly i can´t watch this full length. but i like 1:32 - 1:36
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I like it. Cliché, but quite nice to watch
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I like it. Quirky and sweet. Well shot. He’s got to lose the red short shorts though.
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I think you missed my point. All of the things you say are true assuming that we can’t change the story, but it’s fiction. None of this is set in stone.
finally finds someone who can fix her synth … and travels halfway across the planet to do so
I disagree that this shows commitment and determination in the context of the film because all of it happens offscreen. For the sake of the narrative, we have a short montage and poof! she’s already there, having sacrificed nothing and encountered no obstacles. (Yes, we see a quick shot of her selling some stuff, but none of those things have any other meaning or purpose in the story so it doesn’t hold weight for me.)
That she doesn’t speak English is to be expected since she is from a country where it isn’t the native language, so I don’t think that qualifies her as helpless either
Plenty of people from Ukraine speak English very well. Having her unable to communicate beyond simple gestures and broken phrases is a deliberate choice by the filmmaker. The language barrier would have been a great place to develop both characters—perhaps they could have a shared second language, like French? Or perhaps there’s some other reason they can’t communicate, like she is actually mute but he doesn’t know sign language?
The synth was her late fathers (who through no fault of his own was a man) not just some random guy
But why does it have to be her father’s? Why can’t it just be hers? If you want to keep the father in it for sentimental reasons, how about this: she found the old Polivoks in the basement of a second-hand shop as a teenager, and she loved twisting the knobs but couldn’t manage more than a simple melody. Her father, a concert pianist, didn’t understand electronic music, but because she was delighted by it, he taught her how to play the keys. That’s a story that gives her agency, attaches sentimental value to the object, and can be told in 2-3 shots or through narration.
Maybe there is a more complicated story behind it than “my dad gave it to me.” We’d never know, because she is helpless to communicate the anything more complex to the other character. 
I still personally think the story was a bit of a cliche, but I’d think that if the genders were reversed or both the same too.
I definitely agree, this film needs a lot of work beyond fixing the woman’s agency. But that’s the nice thing about writing strong women—the more characters you have with agency, the more interest they’ll bring to your story!
I appreciate how music and the act of music making brings people together.
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No risks - happy ending, clearly aimed to be accepted as a commercially viable performance of all parties involved.
It’s kinda sweet 
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